WGST 4410W Women’s and Gender Studies Research Seminar (Banerjee): Detailes of Course Requirements

The Course will be structured around the following research activities:

1. Identification of a research topic and developing questions to be probed in the project.
2. Designing a framework and methodology on how to proceed with the research.
3. Review of relevant literature/historiography and developing a critique.
   1. You may work with a librarian to explore scholarly internet data sources both for required college essays and ways of integrating technology into personal teaching practices.
4. Gathering sources/evidence/data, both primary and secondary, to support your project.
5. Create a Bibliography that acts as a major database.
6. Final Research Paper incorporating feminist research method to demonstrate a thesis/finding based on scholarly sources.
7. The project will be reported in class both as a work in progress and as a final product.

1. Class Participation and Attendance (Introductory essay; Discussion Board Posts; Reflections; Responses) 25%                
2. Preliminary Research Topic with bibliography (1-2 pages) 5%
3. Outline of the Final Research Paper  (4-5 pages) 10%
4. Roundtable Research Session (presentation with a summary)
   1. For draft report 10%
   2. Oral presentation to faculty and WGST students (10 points) 10%
5. Final Paper (20-25 pages) 40%

NOTE: Any late assignments will automatically be lowered two grade points.  There is no make-up for missed presentations. 

• All written assignments MUST be uploaded to BlackBoard (Discussion Board or Assignments).
• For research in progress, the same document uploaded on BB will be shared on Google Docs.
• No email attachments will be accepted.
• IF YOU CANNOT PARTICIPATE IN OUR ZOOM, YOUR PARTICIPATION GRADE WILL BE BASED ON THE 3-4 PAGE PAPERS YOU WRITE IN LIEU OF CLASS TIME.
• I will NOT grant Incomplete. 
• I am available during office hours to discuss and work with students on their papers.
• I will not review drafts but I do give students opportunities to revise and resubmit their written work for a potential improvement in case of grades below a C.
• Grades are Non-Negotiable.

Participation

Every student is required to be present and actively participate in the class:

• One must complete the readings for the specific day on which they are assigned.
• One must be prepared and willing to take an active part in class discussion.
• Participation in class discussions entails engagement with the readings and relevant themes.
• You will be expected to ask questions and provide ideas to expand on issues raised during class discussion.
• You should also aim towards a greater understanding of research issues, techniques, and analysis of current research as well as formulation of findings. The Research project provides an opportunity to apply standard research techniques.
• Based on a careful reading of the assigned materials one must share one’s responses and insights in class and in the Discussion Board on BlackBoard.
• Merely showing up for the class and/or engaging in off-topic conversation will NOT suffice.

Attendance

Attendance is mandatory. 

Missing more than three class sessions will lead to reduction of your participation grade by .5 points.

• Students missing 4 class meetings without sufficient explanation will NOT pass the course, notwithstanding the quality of the work submitted.
• LATENESS: Lateness is not only disruptive, but also disrespectful. Lateness will be counted as an absence, unless you can prove there were extenuating circumstances.
• Chronic lateness will not be tolerated: you will be excluded from class activities.

Written assignments must display depth of work, level of critical analysis, accuracy of summary, correct grammar and syntax, composition, references, and coherence.  A bibliography is expected in all research papers including the draft proposal.

NOTE: You are encouraged to read original articles rather than abstracts or reviews of commercial pieces on Yahoo, Google, Wikipedia, etc.

• All papers should be double spaced, 12-point font with 1” margin, and proofread before submission.
• Students automatically lose 2 (two) points on late submission.
  • NO PAPERS ARE ACCEPTED AFTER THE FIRST WEEK OF THE DUE DATE.
• THERE IS NO MAKE-UP FOR MISSED synchronous CLASS PRESENTATIONS.
• Students requiring assistance with writing are urged to utilize the Brooklyn College Writing Center in Boylan Hall.
• Writing assignments must cite sources following any of the recognized modes of citation (The Chicago Manual of Style, MLA, APA).

Citation Information

For the second week of class you will write a brief (2 pages, double-spaced, 1’ margin, 12 size font) essay introducing yourself as a Brooklyn College student. Please indicate your background; why you applied to Brooklyn College; what year you are in; your declared or intended major; what topics/fields interest you; what you expect to do with the degree from BC.

Then use a separate paragraph to tell me why you are taking this class; what you are hoping to learn; is there any specific area in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies that you are interested in.

Please let me know if you have any learning challenges and your learning goals for the semester (when do you learn best? What is most difficult for you to learn in a course?) What kinds of activities help you learn? What motivates or challenges you to participate in class discussion? Do you have a particular situation, such as access to internet, technology, turning videos on, your work schedule that I need to know, especially in these challenging times? Do you work full time? How many classes are you taking? Are you an Honors student interested in an Honors credit for this class? Do you need special accommodation? Are you on probation? Any questions about the syllabus and the class?

Please include your full name; nickname; pronouns; e-mail; cell phone number (in case I need to be in touch in an emergency); course and semester at the top of your paper.

Discussion Board responses are not graded individually. You will lose 1 point for every day it is late up to 3 points. After three days, you lose 3 points and your submission will not be accepted.

1. The Discussion Board responses are informal, open-ended exercises for students to engage with the readings in a meaningful way.
2. The entries must include the following:
   1. Complete name/s of the author/s, the title of the piece, the date of publication, and the publisher (wherever possible).
   2. Main argument/s of the author/s presented in the readings.
   3. The sources the authors are using.
   4. Your analysis, argument.
   5. How you connect with the readings.
   6. Connection with larger socio-cultural and political-economic issues.
   7. Did the readings affect or alter your understanding of the questions in context.

Discussion Board Etiquette

1. Discussion Board is a safe space for online academic discussion. Please respect the diversity of our community and choose your words and sentences carefully. You are free to express your disagreement with another student’s idea but only to be backed up by an intellectual argument drawn from the readings from the class. Give due credits through quotes and citations wherever possible.
2. No offensive, sarcastic, or disrespectful comments, please. No ALL CAPS that seem like you are screaming at your classmate. Use appropriate words and punctuations to emphasize your point. Be kind and empathetic to your peers.
3. DB posts must engage in an informed discussion. Read assigned materials carefully and your classmates’ posts before writing a response. Merely echoing “yes” or “no” to classmates’ posts, without proper explanation of your own comments, will not count.
4. Spelling, grammar, and proper citation of sources count. While I am not expecting footnotes for DB entries, you have to cite at the top or at the end of the document the assigned readings/scholarly sources you drew upon. You lose points if you miss citations.
5. DB entries are low-stakes assignments but you are not permitted to use texting or casual e-mail languages (For Example, do NOT write “u” for “You;” Do NOT use expressions like “NP;” or use emojis)
6. Proofread your posts before posting.
7. If you consider a post by a classmate to be inappropriate or there are technical glitches, please bring it to my attention. Do not take matters into your own hand.
8. Most importantly, write your DB entries in a separate Word Document before posting on BB. Maintain a separate file for your DB entries so that you do not lose them in case there is an issue with BB.